MODULE 1

Essentials of Catholic Faith and Life

INTRODUCTION

This module is about life in Christ, life lived according to the Gospel. The “Good News” is that God has
become man in Jesus Christ our Lord, who came to save us from sin and bring us to fullness of life. This is the
Gospel which we Filipinos have accepted. As PCP II proudly declares: “For us Filipinos, the first century of the
coming millennium will mark the 500th year since we as a people accepted the Faith” (PCP II 3). It makes us
the only Christian nation among our Asian brethren. There are deep affinities between Christ’s message and the
Filipino’s in most ways of thinking and acting. “Much of the Gospel has become part of us __ compassion,
forgiveness, caring, piety and makes of us basically decent people (PCP II 15). Through the past centuries, right
up to our present critical times, growing more mature in the following of Christ has meant becoming more truly
and authentically Filipino.

“It pleased God, in His goodness and wisdom to reveal Himself . . . By this revelation, then, the invisible
God, from the fullness of His love, addresses men as His friends, and moves among them in order to invite and
receive them in His own company” (DV 2). Christian life is based on the conviction that God has spoken to us
and that the central truths of our Faith are given in this revelation. The Christian Scriptures attest that “in times
past God spoke in varied ways to our fathers through the prophets; in this, the final age, He has spoken to us
through His Son” (Heb 1:1-2).

This module also focuses on the Catechesis on creation which is of major importance. It concerns the
very foundations of human and Christian life: for it makes explicit the response of the Christian faith to the
basic question that men of all times have asked themselves: "Where do we come from?" "Where are we going?"
"What is our origin?" "What is our end?" "Where does everything that exists come from and where is it going?"
The two questions, the first about the origin and the second about the end, are inseparable. They are decisive for
the meaning and orientation of our life and actions.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At the end of the unit the students will be able to:

1. describe their own faith experiences,

2. adopt the characteristics of the Filipino faith based on their day-to-day experiences,
3. develop their personal Faith to God .

CORE AND RELATED VALUES

Faith and Communion

BIBLICAL REFLECTION

JAMES 2:22
“YOU SEE THAT FAITH WAS ACTIVE ALONG WITH WORKS AND FAITH WAS COMPLETED BY
THE WORKS.”

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PRESENTATION OF CONCEPT

DEFINITION OF FAITH
If we examine the history of salvation, we find exemplary persons who manifested faith as a total response to
God’s revelation. In the Old Testament, Abraham is a very good model of faith. He obeyed in faith ,even if
doing so would uproot him from the place where he spent many years of his life; he fully submitted himself to
God, believing in God’s every word because he believes its truth is guaranteed by God who is Truth Himself.
The ultimate proof of Abraham’s unshakeable faith in God was when he was willing to offer his only son, Isaac,
to God because God told him so.
Filipinos Celebrating Mother Mary’s Birthday
In the New testament, Mary stands out as our
model of Faith. In the account of the annunciation, we
see Mary giving her Yes to God. Mary’s “response of
faith included both perfect cooperation with the grace
of God that precedes and assists, and perfect openness
to the action of the Holy Spirit, who constantly brings
faith to completion by his gifts. It is not only during
the annunciation that Mary manifested her faith. All
through her life and in all the realities of ordinary
living, more so during those trying moments, such as
when Jesus was lost in the temple and most especially
during His crucifixion, Mary never wavered in her
faith. Her life indeed, is a “pilgrimage of faith and
that makes her our model and support in faith.

From our two examples of faith, we recognize that faith is something that should touch every part of our
being: our minds (believing) our wills (doing) and our hearts (trusting).

Activity 1
Directions: Explain how the following persons give us an example of faith that “believes, acts and trust.”

1. Abraham
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2. Blessed Virgin Mary

_____________________________________________________________
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The Catechism for Filipino Catholics explains this three essential dimensions of faith.

The Three Essential Dimensions of Faith

Vatican II explains this faith-response as follows: “By faith man freely commits his entire self to God,
making ‘the full submission of his intellect and will to God who reveals,’ and willingly assenting to the
Revelation given by Him” (DV 5). Christian Faith, then, touches every part of us: our minds (believing), our
wills (doing), and our hearts (trusting). Let us briefly examine each aspect in turn.

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Believing
Faith involves our basic convictions as Christians. “For if you
confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your
heart that God raised him from the dead; you will be saved” “YOU SEE THAT
(Rom 10:9). John sums up his Gospel with: “These things have FAITH WAS ACTIVE
been recorded to help you believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the
Son of God, so that through this faith you may have life in his ALONG WITH WORKS
name” (Jn 20: 31). Faith, then, is knowing, but not mere “head
knowledge” of some abstract truths. It is like the deep
AND FAITH WAS
knowledge we have of our parents, or of anyone we love COMPLETED BY THE
dearly. Christian Faith, then, is personal knowledge of Jesus
Christ as “my Lord and my God” (Jn 20:28). Christ solemnly WORKS.”
assures each of us: “Here I stand knocking at the door. If
anyone hears me calling and opens the door, I will enter his JAMES 2:22
house, and have supper with him, and he with me” (Rv 3:20).

Doing

But besides believing, faith is also doing. As St. James writes: “My brothers, what good is it to profess faith
without practicing it?” (Jas 2:14). Christ himself taught: “None of those who cry out ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the
Kingdom of God, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven” (Mt 7:21). Faith, then, is a
commitment to follow (obey) God’s will for us. This we see exemplified in Mary’s “I am the servant of the
Lord. Let it be done to me as you say” (Lk 1:38). PCP II brings out this “doing” dimension of faith as
“witnessing” through “loving service” of our needy neighbors. In our concrete situation, particularly urgent is
the call for: 1) deeds of justice and love; and 2) for protecting and caring for our endangered earth’s
environment (cf. PCP II 78-80).

Of course, we realize that we often do not do what we affirm in faith. But this awareness of our failures
emphasizes all the more the essential place of behavior in authentic Christian Faith. It also makes us more
conscious of our need for Christ’s Spirit to live out our faith in our actions. “For apart from me you can do
nothing” (Jn 15:5). “Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace of God to move and assist him;
he must have the interior helps of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart
and converts it to God” (DV 5).

Entrusting/Worshipping

Beyond believing and doing, faith is also entrusting oneself into God’s hands. Abraham, our father in faith, at
God’s command left everything to set out for a foreign land. Against all human odds Moses trusted Yahweh to
free the Hebrews from their slavery in Egypt. In the New Testament, Jesus worked signs and cures only with
those who trusted in him. He promised the possessed boy’s father: “Everything is possible to a man who trusts”
(Mk 9:23).

Faith, then, is from the heart __ the loving, trusting, and hoping in the Lord that comes from God’s own love
flooding our hearts. This trusting Faith “lives and grows through prayer and worship” personal heartfelt
conversation with God that is the opposite of mindless, mechanical repetition of memorized formulas. Genuine
personal prayer and group prayer find both their inspirational source and summit of perfection in the Liturgy,
the Catholic community’s official public Trinitarian worship of the Father, through Jesus Christ our Lord, in the
Holy Spirit (cf. PCP II 74-77).

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 Feast of the Black Nazarene. A famous tradition in the
Activity 2
Philippilines
Should the three dimensions of faith go hand in hand? Yes or No? In 100 words or 50 words, explain your
answer based on your personal faith experience.

From these three essential dimension of faith, we can deduce the characteristics of Christian Faith.

Characteristics of Christian Faith

Total and Absolute

Faith touches our entire person. Already the Old

Testament contrasted faith “in man in whom there
is no salvation” with faith in “the Lord who made
heaven and earth . . . who shall reign forever” (cf.
Ps 146:3,5-6,10; Jer 17:5-8). Only Faith in God
calls for a total and absolute adherence (cf. CCC
150). Christ himself provides, especially in his
Passion, Death and Resurrection, the best example
of this total and absolute commitment to God.

Trinitarian

For us Christians, Faith is our adherence to the

Triune God revealed through Jesus Christ our
Lord. It is our friendship with Christ and through
Christ with the Father, in their Holy Spirit.
Through Christ’s witness to his Father in his teaching, preaching, miracles, and especially in his
Passion, Death and Resurrection, we come to believe in Christ our Savior, in the Father, and in the Holy Spirit
sent into our hearts. Our Faith as Catholics, then, consists in our personal conviction and belief in God our
Father, revealed by Jesus Christ, His own divine Son-made-man, and their presence to us through the Holy
Spirit, in the Church (cf. PCP II 64; CCC 151-52).

Loving, Maturing and Missionary

Our Christian Faith is truly life-giving and mature only through love, for “the man without love has known
nothing of God, for God is love” (1 Jn 4:8). And to be Christian, this love must be inseparably love of God and
love of neighbor, like Christ’s. It thus impels us to mission, to evangelize, by bringing others the Good News
(cf. 1 Cor 9:16). Such a missionary spirit is the test of authentic Faith because it is unthinkable that a person
should believe in Christ’s Word and Kingdom without bearing witness and proclaiming it in his turn (cf. EN 24;
PCP II 67-71, 402). This means we are all called to share in Christ’s own three-fold mission as priest, prophet
and king (cf. PCP II 116-21; LG 10-13).

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Informed and Communitarian

PCP II insists that Catholic Faith must be “informed,” that is “believing Jesus’ words, and accepting his
teachings, trusting that he has “the words of eternal life” (cf. Jn 6:68; NCDP 147). It must be “communitarian”
since it is the Church that transmits to us Christ’s revelation through Sacred Scripture and its living Tradition,
and alone makes possible for us an adequate faith-response (cf. PCP II 65).

Inculturated

This Catholic faith in God and in Jesus Christ is never separated from the typical Filipino faith in family and
friends. On the one hand, we live out our faith in God precisely in our daily relationships with family, friends,
fellow workers, etc. On the other hand, each of these is radically affected by our Catholic Faith in God our
Father, in Jesus Christ His only begotten Son, our Savior, and in their Holy Spirit dwelling within us in grace.
“This is how all will know you for my disciples: your love for one another” (Jn 13:35; cf.PCP II 72-73, 162,
202-11).

Activity 3
Which among the five characteristics of faith do you think that your family practice? Share this topic to
your family and ask at least two family members to assess your answer.

We Filipinos have had a long history of very sharp and colorful religious experiences: From our pre-
Christian times, through the centuries of Spanish Christian evangelization, to the American Protestant influx in
the Commonwealth era, and the Japanese occupation during World War II, right up past Vatican II’s “Second
Pentecost,” to “People Power” and today’s “Basic Christian Communities,” and the 2nd Plenary Council of the
Philippines [PCP II]. Our understanding and love of Jesus Christ has been colored by our personal and national
historical experiences of pain and struggle, of victory and celebration. Our faith in Jesus is marked by our deep
devotion to Mary, his Mother, and our Mother and Model. All these experiences have somehow defined and
clarified our unique identity as persons, as Christians, as Filipinos, as a nation.

PCP II was held “to take stock of where we are; to look where we are going; to reanimate our
life in Christ; to unite all things in Him (PCP II 7). Our Catholic Faith, therefore, must be “inculturated” within
our specific and unique Filipino character which has in part shaped our faith experiences through the years. This
Catechism represents a serious effort at just such an inculturated presentation of the essentials of the Faith to the
Catholic Filipino of today.

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 WHO IS THE FILIPINO CATHOLIC?

To identify what it means to be a “Filipino Catholic” we ask: From whom do we naturally draw our self-
identity? Where do we find the deepest meaning in our lives? How do we react to suffering? How do we
commit ourselves to our ideals in life? What is our view of the world in all its depth and hidden reality? Brief
answers to these questions can be sketched by selecting a series of five predominant Filipino characteristics,
together with five essential traits of Jesus Christ, both assumed within the typical “Filipino way” to Jesus. This
will at once define the Filipino Catholic as well as show that in our country, to become more deeply Christian is
to become more truly and authentically Filipino.

Self-identity

First, we Filipinos are family-oriented. The anak-magulang relationship is of primary importance to us

Filipinos. Ama, ina, and anak are culturally and emotionally significant to us Filipinos who cherish our filial
attachment not only to our immediate family, but also to our extended family (ninongs, ninangs, etc.). This
family-centeredness supplies a basic sense of belonging, stability and security. It is from our families that we
Filipinos naturally draw our sense of self-identity.

Jesus as both the Son of God (Anak ng Amang Diyos) and the Son of Man (Anak ng Tao) endears himself
naturally to us family-oriented Filipinos. As Son of Man, Jesus leads us to his Mother Mary (Ina ng Diyos)
whom he shares with us (cf. Jn 19:26-27). He thus welcomes us into his own household, offers himself as our
brother (kapatid), and draws us through the Sacrament of Baptism to a new identity and into the family life of
his heavenly Father (cf. children praying
Filipino Jn before meal 3:5-7).

Meaning in Life

Second, we Filipinos are meal-oriented (salu-salo, kainan). Because Filipinos consider almost everyone as part
of their family (parang pamilya), we are known for being gracious hosts and grateful guests. Serving our guests
with the best we have is an inborn value to Filipinos, rich and poor alike. We love to celebrate any and all
events with a special meal. Even with unexpected guests, we Filipinos try our best to offer something, meager
as it may be, with the traditional greeting: “Come and eat with us.” (Tuloy po kayo at kumain muna tayo.)

Jesus as Eucharist is not only the host of the new Paschal Meal (cf. 1 Cor 11:23-26), and the food, the bread of
life (cf. Jn 6:48-58), but even the guest in every gathering (cf. Mt 18:20; Rev 3:20). The New Testament refers
more than twenty-five times to eating (kainan). Eating together in table fellowship with the presence of the risen
Christ (cf.1 Cor 10:17), “Communion,” in other words, constitutes the core-witness of the early Church as a
Eucharistic community.So we Filipinos feel naturally “at home” in breaking bread together with Jesus. PCP II’s
“spirituality of social transformation finds in the Eucharist not only its full nourishment but also its total
prayerful communion with the Lord of salvation and liberation” (PCP II 281).

Sufferings in Life

Third, we Filipinos are kundiman-oriented. The

kundiman is a sad Filipino song about wounded
love. Filipinos are naturally attracted to heroes
sacrificing everything for love. We are patient
and forgiving to a fault (“magpapaka-alipin ako
nang dahil sa iyo”). This acceptance of suffering
manifests a deep, positive spiritual value of
Filipinos’ kalooban. Jesus, the Suffering Servant
of the prophet Isaiah, is portrayed through our
favorite Filipino images of Padre Hesus
Nazareno, the Santo Entierro or the Sacred Heart.
Through these images, Jesus appears as one of
“the least of our brethren”: the hungry and thirsty, the naked, the sick, the lonely stranger and the prisoner (cf.
Mt 25:31-46). Jesus the Suffering Servant can thus reach out to us Filipinos as a healing and forgiving Savior
who understands our weaknesses, our failures, our feelings of depression, fear and loneliness. He has been
through it all himself! To us Filipinos who can even celebrate the sufferings and hardships of life in song, Jesus
Christ calls:“Come to me, all you who are weary and find life burdensome, and I will refresh you” (Mt 11:28).

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Life-Commitment

Fourth, we Filipinos are bayani-oriented. A bayani is a hero. We Filipinos are natural hero-followers. For all our
patience and tolerance, we will not accept ultimate failure and defeat. We tend instinctively to always
personalize any good cause in terms of a leader, especially when its object is to defend the weak and the
oppressed. To protect this innate sense of human dignity, Filipinos are prepared to lay down even their lives.
Jesus as Christ the King (Cristo Rey)
responds well to the bayani-oriented Filipino.
As born social critics,organizers and martyrs,
we Filipinos see Jesus Christ as the
Conqueror of the world by his mission as
prophet, king and priest (cf. PCP II 57-61).
Jesus came as one sent by the Father, to do
the Father’s will (cf. Jn 5:30). He was “to
bring glad tidings to the poor, to proclaim
liberty to captives, recovery of sight to the
blind, and release to prisoners” (Lk 4:18).
Although a “sign of contradiction” himself
(Lk 2:34), Jesus made the Kingdom of God
present among his people by his teaching (cf.
Mt 7:29) and signs. “The blind recover their
sight, cripples walk, lepers are cured, the deaf hear, dead men are raised to life, and the poor have the good
news preached to them” (Lk 7:22). So as bayani-oriented, we Filipinos enthrone our image of Cristo Rey. He
assures us that everything will be alright in the end. Christ the King has won the ultimate victory over evil.

World View

Fifth, we Filipinos are spirit-oriented. We are often said to be naturally psychic. We have a deep-seated belief in
the supernatural and in all kinds of spirits dwelling in individual persons, places and things. Even in today’s
world of science and technology, Filipinos continue to invoke the spirits in various undertakings, especially in
faith-healings and exorcisms. Jesus the “miracle-worker” who promised to send his Spirit to his disciples to
give them new life (cf. Jn 15:26; 16:7; 13-14), is thus very appealing to us Filipinos. The Holy Spirit, sent by
the Father and the Risen Christ, draws us Filipinos into a community wherein superstition and enslaving magic
are overcome by authentic worship of the Father “in spirit and truth” (cf. Jn 4:23). In Christ’s community, the
Church, “to each person the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good” (1 Cor 12:7). This same
Spirit, which empowered Jesus the miracle worker, is active in his disciples, uniting them in the teaching of the
apostles, and in community fellowship of the breaking of bread and prayer through Christ their Lord (LG 13).

The Filipino Catholic

From the series of five Filipino characteristics inter-related with essential traits of Jesus Christ, a rough sketch
of us Filipino Catholics can be drawn. We are first of all family-centered Filipinos who can easily talk to God
the Father through His only begotten Son-mademan, our Lord Jesus Christ. Secondly, we find meaning in our
lives and learn to face the hunger and poverty around us in encountering Jesus as Eucharist in our parish
community.

Third, as Filipino Catholics, because we have met Christ the Suffering Servant in his Passion, we can pray
about sin and forgiveness, about justice and reconciliation, about the suffering and Passion of our own Filipino
people today. We have the strength to offer ourselves as “bread broken for the world,” together with Jesus,
because we believe with unshakeable hope that the Crucified One is Risen from the dead, victorious over sin,
death and the world.

Fourth, we Catholic Filipinos, resilient as the bamboo (kawayan) and sturdy as the narra, commit ourselves to
Christ, our hero-king, in deep gratitude for the gift of faith and for being Filipino. Lastly, our world vision as
Catholic Filipinos is gradually transformed by Christ’s Spirit-in-the-world in our Church community.

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Activity 4

Reflect and Share!

How does Jesus Christ as presented in Catholic teaching correspond to Filipino character traits?

GOD REVEALS HIMSELF

In Creation

The first way God reveals Himself to us is through

creation. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the
firmament proclaims His handiwork” (Ps 19:1). In
creation, man holds a special place. God said: “Let us
make man in our image, after our likeness” (Gn 1:26).
God even gives us a share in His own creativity: “Be
fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it” (Gn
1:28). God creates the whole world for us, to support us
in life and reveals Himself to us through His handiwork.
“Since the creation of the world. . . God’s eternal power
and divinity have become visible, recognized through the
things He has made” (Rom 1:20).

Natural Signs

For us Filipinos, then, the world and everything in it are

natural signs of God __ the initial way God makes
Himself known to us. Yet in our everyday experience, we meet not only love, friendship, the good and the
beautiful, but also suffering, temptation and evil. All creation has become affected by sin __ “sin entered the
world, and with sin death” (Rom 5:12). The “natural signs” of the Creator have thus become disfigured by
pollution, exploitation, injustice, oppression and suffering. So God chose to reveal Himself in a second, more
intimate way, by entering into the history of the human race He had created.

In Scripture, through Salvation History

The Bible records God’s entering into a special covenant relationship with His chosen people, the race of
Abraham, the people of Israel. “I will dwell in the midst of the Israelites and will be their God” (Ex 29:45).

Biblical Signs

God revealed Himself in stages. In the Old Testament, God revealed Himself through biblical signs made up of
both deeds and words. He made covenants with Noah, with Abraham, and with Moses. He performed great
works for His Chosen People, and proclaimed their saving power and truth through the prophets’ words (cf. DV
2; CCC 56-64). Through chosen men and women __ kings, judges, prophets, priests and wisemen, God led,
liberated, and corrected His people. He forgave their sins. He thus revealed Himself as Yahweh, He-who-is-
with His people. He is “the Lord, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity”
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(Ex 34:6). Today, through His inspired word in the Old Testament, God still reveals Himself to us, and inspires
us to respond to His covenant.

Yet, even God’s revelation in history was weakened by the infidelities and hardness of heart of His Chosen
People. But God so loved the world, that in the fullness of time, He sent His only Son to be our Savior, like us
in all things except sin (cf. Jn 3:16; Gal 4:4; Heb 4:15; CCC 65). Jesus Christ “completed and perfected God’s
revelation by words and works, signs and miracles, but above all by his death and glorious resurrection from the
dead” (DV 4). Thus the Risen Christ, prefigured in the Old Testament and proclaimed by the apostles, is the
unique, irrevocable and definitive revelation of God.

In the Church

But God’s definitive revelation in Jesus Christ did not stop with Christ’s ascension to his Father. Jesus himself
had gathered around him a group of disciples who would form the nucleus of his Church. In this Church, the
“Good News” of Jesus Christ would be proclaimed and spread to the ends of the earth by the power of the Holy
Spirit, sent down upon the apostles at Pentecost (cf. Acts 1:8). “What was handed on by the apostles comprises
everything that serves to make the People of God live their lives in holiness and increase their faith. In this way
the Church in her doctrine, life and worship, perpetuates and transmits to every generation all that she herself is,
all that she believes” (DV 8; cf. CCC 77-79). PCP II summarizes this by stating that Sacred Scripture and the
living tradition of the Church transmit to us the teachings of Jesus” (PCP II 65).

Liturgical/Ecclesial Signs

God continues to manifest Himself today through the Holy Spirit in the Church. He is present in the Church’s
preaching the truth of Scripture, in its witness of loving service, and through the celebration of its Christ-given
Sacraments. Christ’s revelation in the Church is “the new and definitive covenant [which] will never pass away.
No new public revelation is to be expected before the glorious manifestation of our Lord, Jesus Christ (1 Tim
6:14; Ti 2:13)” (DV 4).

In Other Religions

But many Filipino Catholics ask if non-Christians receive God’s revelation. The Church, in her prophetic
mission of “reading the signs of the times and of interpreting them in the light of the Gospel” (GS 4), discerns
the seeds of the Word in the history and culture of all men of good will. Thus, even non-Christians “who do not
know the Gospel of Christ or his Church, but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart, and, moved by
grace, try in their actions to do His will as they know it through the dictates of their conscience, may achieve
eternal salvation” (LG 16). 75. For whatever is true and holy in non-Christian cultures and religions is accepted
by the Catholic Church since it “often reflect[s] a ray of that truth which enlightens all men.” Filipino Catholics,
therefore, should “acknowledge, preserve and encourage the spiritual and moral truths found among non-
Christians, also their social life and culture” (NA 2).

PCP II provides guidelines for this inter-religious dialogue. It must be based firmly on the fact that salvation in
Jesus Christ is offered to all, and that the Church is the ordinary means of salvation since she possesses the
fullness of the means to salvation (cf. UR 3). This makes possible “openness in understanding the religious
convictions of others. [For] ‘dialogue based on hope and love will bear fruit in the Spirit’ (RMi 56)” [PCP II
112-13].

Activity 5
Directions: Sight some instances on how God revealed Himself on your day to day experiences through the
following:

In Creation:
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 The creation of Adam (Michelangelo)

_____________________________________________________________
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In the Church:
_____________________________________________________________
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_____________________________________________________________

In other Religions:
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________

CREATION

Catechesis on creation is of major importance. It concerns the very foundations of human and Christian
life: for it makes explicit the response of the Christian faith to the basic question that men of all times haveasked
themselves:120 "Where do we come from?" "Where are we going?" "What is our origin?" "What is our end?"
"Where does everything that exists come from and where is it going?" The two questions, the first about the
origin and the second about the end, are inseparable. They are decisive for the meaning and orientation of our
life and actions.

CREATION ACCOUNT
(Genesis 1:1-31)

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In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth —
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* and the earth was without form or shape, with darkness over the abyss and a mighty wind sweeping over the
waters—

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Then God said: Let there be light, and there was light.
4
God saw that the light was good. God then separated the light from the darkness.
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God called the light “day,” and the darkness he
called “night.” Evening came, and morning
followed—the first day.*

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Then God said: Let there be a dome in the
middle of the waters, to separate one body of
water from the other.
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God made the dome,* and it separated the
water below the dome from the water above
the dome. And so it happened
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God called the dome “sky.” Evening came, and morning followed—the second day.

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9
Then God said: Let the water under the sky be gathered into a single basin, so that the dry land may appear. And
so it happened: the water under the sky was gathered into its basin, and the dry land appeared.
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God called the dry land “earth,” and the basin of water he called “sea.” God saw that it was good.

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Then God said: Let the earth bring forth vegetation: every kind of plant that bears seed and every kind of fruit
tree on earth that bears fruit with its seed in it. And so it happened:
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the earth brought forth vegetation: every kind of plant that bears seed and every kind of fruit tree that bears fruit
with its seed in it. God saw that it was good.
13
Evening came, and morning followed—the third day.

14
Then God said: Let there be lights in the dome of the sky, to separate day from night. Let them mark the
seasons, the days and the years,
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and serve as lights in the dome of the sky, to illuminate the earth. And so it happened:
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God made the two great lights, the greater one to govern the day, and the lesser one to govern the night, and the
stars.
17
God set them in the dome of the sky, to illuminate the earth,
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to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. God saw that it was good.
19
Evening came, and morning followed—the fourth day.

20
Then God said: Let the water teem with an abundance of living creatures, and on the earth let birds fly beneath
the dome of the sky.
21
God created the great sea monsters and all kinds of crawling living creatures with which the water teems, and
all kinds of winged birds. God saw that it was good,
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and God blessed them, saying: Be fertile, multiply, and fill the water of the seas; and let the birds multiply on
the earth.
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Evening came, and morning followed—the fifth day.

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Then God said: Let the earth bring forth every kind of living
creature: tame animals, crawling things, and every kind of wild
animal. And so it happened:
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God made every kind of wild animal, every kind of tame animal,
and every kind of thing that crawls on the ground. God saw that
it was good.
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Then God said: Let us make* human beings in our image, after
our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the
birds of the air, the tame animals, all the wild animals, and all the
creatures that crawl on the earth.

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God created mankind in his image; in the image of God he created them; male and female* he created them.

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God blessed them and God said to them: Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it.* Have dominion
over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that crawl on the earth.m
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* n God also said: See, I give you every seed-bearing plant on all the earth and every tree that has seed-bearing
fruit on it to be your food;
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and to all the wild animals, all the birds of the air, and all the living creatures that crawl on the earth, I give all
the green plants for food. And so it happened.
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God looked at everything he had made, and found it very good. Evening came, and morning followed—the
sixth day.

In summary, we see and feel God in creation. Every created reality bears an imprint of God In creation,
God tells us that He is a caring Father providing for our needs. He is an empowering God who shares with the
Human person His creativity and the beauty and order in creation point to God’s own magnificence and order.

Activity 6

Make a short comprehensive written reflection on your experience and your encounter with the beauty of
nature. Please write your reflection on the space provided below.

BROADENING OF CONCEPT

Catholic faith is “to know, love and follow Jesus Christ in His Body, the Church.” It is that attitude, activity,
and process by which we, empowered by God’s grace:
 Freely commit our entire selves to God,
 Offer our liberty, our understanding and our whole will to God who reveals Himself and His plan, and
 Willingly assent to His revelation.

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Christian Faith is:
 Total, absolute commitment to the Blessed Trinity, our heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, His iwn divine
Son-made-Man, and their Holy Spirit,
 In a “Loving Knowledge”
 That helps us grow and mature as Filipinos,
 Within our Filipino culture and values, and
 Sends us forth to spread the Gospel.

What does faith do for us?

Faith in Jesus Christ:

• helps us to grow into adult persons who can relate to others responsibly and maturely;
• liberates us from being enslaved by sin; and
• opens us to deep joy and happiness in the Lord.

How can we be sure of our faith?

Faith is something like the loving knowledgewe have of our family and friends. We are“sure” of their love and
we try to respond tothem. Likewise, through God’s Revelation inChrist, we are absolutely sure of His love
forus, and try to respond through the gift of faith.

Activity 7

Communicate to your classmates/friends. Reflect and share about your personal faith.

Guide questions:
 How do you describe faith base on your personal relationship with God?
 How strong is your faith?
 What does faith empower us to do?
 What is the relationship of our faith with our being Filipino?

Write the outcome of your sharing on the space given below.

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INTEGRATION

Like Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo, who is a woman of faith. We, Filipinos are also called to be
faithful. In real life, every time we face unfortunate events such as setbacks and illnesses, we may think that
God has forsaken us and no longer protects us, and thereby sink into negativity and lose our faith in God. Yet as
long as we pray to God in these situations and understand His will, our mistaken viewpoints will be turned
around.

SUMMARY

Faith is a reality touching our whole selves, our minds (convictions), our hands and will (Committed
action) and our hearts (trust).Christian Faith, then, is not something fragmented. It is a living way of life that
integrates our minds, wills, and hearts with its doctrine, morals, and worship, within a sustaining community of
fellow disciples of Christ.

In summary, we can say that faith is not simply we say with our lips; it is not something we use for our
convenience, such as when we want to be in or when we are in dire need of something from God. Faith is our
unconditional and resounding yes to God who wants nothing but happiness for us. If we realize how fortunate
we are to be given the grace faith despite our being undeserving, then we shall not hesitate to say” Yes Lord, I
surrender myself to you make me a humble servant whose happiness lies in doing your will.”

Through this general definition of faith, we can easily understand the faith of the Filipino people. Who,
then, are Filipino Catholics? We are a people who have experienced in one way or another that our Filipino
identity, meaning, suffering, commitment and world-view are all tied to Jesus Christ. Like a diamond with a
thousand facets, Christ is able to reveal to every person and nation, their very own unity, truth and value.

Thus we Filipino Catholics are people who:

• as baptized into discipleship of Jesus Christ, discover our identity as adopted children of our
Father and as members of Christ’s Body, the Church, inspired by Mary our Mother;

• in the breaking of bread around the table of the Lord, find meaning in sharing ecclesial
fellowship with one another and with Christ, their Priest and Eucharist;

• in meeting the Crucified Savior are sustained in the sufferings and hardships of life, and receive
forgiveness for their sins through his Sacraments;

• commit ourselves to our Risen Lord and his mission through the gift of Faith, celebrated in
great Hope in the Sacraments, and lived out in Love and service of their fellowmen;

• form our world-vision led by the Spirit of the Risen Christ, experienced in the Christian
community, the Church, which sustains us in our pilgrimage of life-in-Christ; and

• approach and live out this Christian life within the powerful inspiring presence of Mary, our
Mother and Model.

The Filipino Catholics experience God’s Self-revelation today. First, God shows Himself in the natural
signs of the beauty and abundance of our natural resources and our rich Filipino culture. Second, the biblical
signs in God’s inspired Word in Scripture, the book of the Church, reveal Him. Third, through the Church’s
liturgical signs, we encounter the Risen Christ in the Sacraments. Finally, God makes Himself known to us
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through the ecclesial signs of the Church’s proclamation of the Creed and in her moral teachings and
commitment to service.

ASSESSMENT

Journal writing

Think about the ideas and information of the course and find what is relevant to you.
Write your journal on a one whole piece of yellow paper. (for categories 2 and 3, electronic submission of
Journal writing through google classroom)

PURPOSIVE ASSIGNMENT

Make your own creation story. Base it on your day to day experiences with your God.

RUBRICS FOR ESSAY, JOURNAL, AND REFLECTION WIRITNG

4 3 2 1
SCORE
EXPERT Accomplished Capable Beginner

CONTENT Evidence of A capacity for Relative absence Unexamined,

independent independent of independent clichéd thinking.
thought. Relevant, thought, though not thought. Supporting
telling, quality fully realized. Supporting details details are a
details give Supporting details and information seemingly
important are relevant, but are somewhat random
information. one or more key relevant, but key collection of
issues is points are information,
unsupported. unsupported. unclear, or not
related to the
topic.

QUALITY Piece was written Piece was written Piece has little Piece had no
OF in an extraordinary in an interesting style and voice. It style and voice.
WRITING style and voice. It is style and voice. It is gives some new It gives no new
very informative somewhat information but information and
and well organized. informative and poorly organized. very poorly
well organized. organized.

GRAMMA Virtually no Few spelling and A number of So many

R, USAGE, spelling, punctuations errors, spelling, spelling,
AND punctuation or minor grammatical punctuation or punctuation and
MECHANI grammatical errors errors grammatical grammatical
CS errors errors that
interferes with
the thought

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TOTAL SCORE

SUPPORTING RESOURCES

BOOK
• Catechism of the Catholic Church(CCC)
• Bible(New Revised Standard, New American, Good News
• Catechism for Filipino Catholics-ECCE Word and Life Publications
• Vatican II

ONLINE
https://chermercado.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/cfc-cbcp.pdf

https://www.slideshare.net/jojoguiang/7-faith-cfc

https://www.cagnz.org/lose-faith-in-God.html?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9t3J7N6Z6gIVlK2WCh1fAg4aEAAYASAAEgIi1vD_BwE

Prepared by:

Mr. Kenneth Robert R. Nono

Instructor

Noted by:

Mrs. Nerissa M. Manalo

Program Dean

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